As Link, his mentor Alfonzo, and Zelda make haste to the Tower of Spirits, their journey cut short by the disappearance of tracks and the appearance of the Demon Train, the treacherous Chancellor Cole, and the deadly looking warrior known as Byrne. Though Alfonzo and even Link valiantly attempt to stop them, they are unable to stand against Byrne, who takes them on in a devastating assault. Byrne shows that he is willing to cut down anyone who would try to stop his goal of resurrecting the Demon King Malladus. He steals Zelda’s body, which Cole had extracted her spirit from, and the villains escape on the Demon Train.
Link, along with Zelda’s spirit, recoup from their defeat and are aided by the Lokomo Anjean as they travel across Hyrule on their quest to restore the Spirit Tracks and to search for Zelda’s body. All the while, Byrne patiently waits for the Demon King’s resurrection. But he also keeps an eye on the Spirit Tracks, which he notices are slowly but surely returning.
Byrne was clearly a being of great power and great skill, and his desire for victory seemed to be unmatched. But aside from these, little was understood about him after his first encounter with the heroes. His motivations only seem to be that of a subservient henchman. Could the destruction of Hyrule truly be all he seeks?
Byrne, fed up with their interference, confronts Link and Zelda when they attempt to take the Fire Realm map. He had deduced that it was them restoring the tracks, and though he underestimated them in the past, he was no longer willing to take any chances. He will now end things — or so he thinks. Anjean arrives to protect and save Link and Zelda before challenging Byrne on her own.
A mighty revelation is learned during Anjean’s rescue attempt: Byrne was once her apprentice. Byrne was a Lokomo, and had been training at the Tower of Spirits to learn the ancient powers of his people. But his true motivations were to gain the power of the spirits, not merely to serve them. That is why, when they would not grant his wish for this power, Byrne chose to align himself with the only other being who could: Malladus.
This was when Byrne was seen for what he truly was. He was completely misguided, prideful, and unwilling to let go of his anger. He refused to accept a fate that did not validate all of his petty desires, as if the spirits should have kept a list of the things he wanted and checked them off one by one. Byrne was at a crossroads between growth and self-destruction, and he foolishly chose to tread down the latter path.
The next and final time Byrne confronts the heroes comes soon after the previous one. Link and Zelda, returning to the Tower of Spirits after a fruitful visit to the Fire Realm, continue their quest and ascend further up the tower. Once they reach their newest goal, they are again greeted by Byrne, who was victorious in his battle against Anjean. With no one to protect them, the two heroes have no choice but to give it their all in a battle against the elite Lokomo warrior.
This time though, the battle goes differently and far in Link and Zelda’s favor. Badly wounded and humiliated by his loss at the hands of children, Byrne makes a timid retreat to the peak of the tower to rendezvous with Cole, who is performing the ritual that will revive Malladus.
Byrne watches with excitement as Malladus is reborn in Zelda’s body, but his glee is soon brought to an end — and almost along with his life. Byrne wastes no time in trying to demand that the Demon King grant him the power he seeks, but Malladus’s only answer is to use his dark magic to attack Byrne, nearly killing him. Cole then taunts Byrne, having played the Lokomo for a fool. Malladus would want nothing to do with a vile Lokomo such as Byrne, even a treacherous one. Byrne’s deceit and violence have earned him nothing. Clinging to life, all Byrne can do is watch with anger as Malladus and Cole depart on the Demon Train.
This betrayal was a blow to Byrne. He was so sure of himself, so arrogant. But he was still considered nothing by the demons he had aligned himself with. The traitor betrayed, Byrne, though he was reluctant to show it, felt alone and pathetic. He was in anguish, but this was a low point that he needed to dwell in, at least for a time.
Despite his multiple attempts to kill them, Byrne is brought into the Spirit Train by the heroes in an attempt to save him. Zelda saves his life, even though he had helped essentially take hers. While he seemingly appears to be unconscious, Link, Zelda, and Anjean (who was still injured from her battle with Byrne) plan their next move against the demons. But Byrne is awake, and he listens as the heroes concoct their next move, that move being to find the Bow of Light. He also listens as Zelda continues to show concern for his wellbeing.
Once Link and Zelda return with the bow, Byrne knows he must help, so he informs them that they must acquire the Compass of Light, which he had created, in order to locate Malladus and Cole. Offering this information is all he can do in his injured state, but Byrne’s help is much appreciated, and the heroes begin to, however slightly, warm up to him. This is why they opt to bring him with them to the Dark Realm, which is where Link and Zelda would find and face Malladus.
During the fight with Malladus, Link is successfully able to use the Bow of Light to expel the demon from Zelda’s body. She attempts to reclaim it, but she is unable to for reasons she cannot understand. Malladus tries to possess it again, but Byrne arrives to block the king’s advance. He encourages Zelda to try again, telling her that her sacred power will help her. The advice works, and Zelda becomes whole again. Sadly, this noble pursuit comes at a cost, as the Demon King destroys Byrne’s body in revenge.
The heroes defeat Malladus, and Anjean joins them on the battlefield. Zelda gives her condolences to Anjean for the loss of her apprentice, but Anjean assures the princess that Lokomos cannot be killed so easily, and she proceeds to restore Byrne’s spirit in the form of a ball of light. She promises that, in time, Byrne will return, though he will have no memory of past events. The two, along with the other Lokomo, return to the heavens with their task of protecting humanity now complete.
Byrne was a complex figure, but this complexity was sadly more of a self-inflicted condition than anything else. He fixated on what he believed his future should have been and lost himself in his attempt to earn it. But he was able to grow past his selfish lust for power once the harshness of reality taught him a valuable lesson: Power is no substitute for the bonds with family and friends.
